1. Field
The present disclosure relates to methods and apparatuses for displaying a medical image, and more particularly, to methods and apparatuses for displaying a medical image, which display synthesis accuracy of a synthesis image in which a plurality of medical images are synthesized on the synthesis image.
2. Description of the Related Art
An apparatus for obtaining a medical image obtains medical image data regarding a fault, or a blood flow, etc. of an object by irradiating a predetermined signal toward the object and receiving a signal from the object in response to the irradiated signal.
For example, the apparatus for obtaining a medical image may obtain ultrasound image data, X-ray image data, computerized tomography (CT) image data, magnetic resonance (MR) image data, positron emission tomography (PET) image data, and image data similar thereto.
A region of an object, an image of which may be captured at one time by the apparatus for obtaining a medical image, may be limited to a portion of the object depending on the size of the apparatus, capturing accuracy, or an image resolution. Therefore, to obtain a synthesis image of a wider region or a higher resolution by coupling a plurality of captured images, an image stitching technique is used.
The apparatus for obtaining a medical image may divide an object of a long length, an image of which cannot be captured at one time, into a plurality of regions, and perform capturing a plurality of times. In this case, for image stitching, the apparatus for obtaining a medical image may set a plurality of regions whose images have been captured such that each of the plurality of regions whose images have been captured overlaps another region whose image has been captured.
A medical image system may generate a synthesis image for a wider region of an object by synthesizing a plurality of images of a plurality of regions of the object, whose images have bee captured, obtained by the apparatus for obtaining a medical image, and display the generated synthesis image on a screen of a medical image display device and provide the same to a user.
The image stitching technique is generally performed by a computer software, and a seamless image stitching result in which images overlap each other accurately is required.
However, in the case where the medical image system performs auto stitching that generates a synthesis image by automatically synthesizing a plurality of images, synthesis accuracy (that is, a degree to which portions of an object represented by regions in which a plurality of images overlap in order to generate a synthesis image coincide with each other) of a synthesis image may deteriorate due to an error of the apparatus, an error of an image analysis result, movement of an object, etc.
To accurately diagnose or treat a disease by using a synthesis image, the synthesis image in which a plurality of images are accurately synthesized without distortion should be provided to a user. Therefore, a method and an apparatus for displaying a medical image that display an overlapped section in which a plurality of images configuring a synthesis image overlap and synthesis accuracy of the synthesis image so that a user may intuitively recognize whether the synthesis image without distortion is provided are required.